The Most Interesting and Unusual Languages to Learn for Fun

Although English is one of the most popular languages to learn across the globe, there are many others worth taking note of and considering. We checked with Lingomee.com which are the most interesting and unusual languages to learn, and broke down which are the most unique languages to dip your toe into!

Japanese

Many consider the Japanese language to be very hard to learn, especially for English speakers. It has three separate writing systems, a complicated hierarchy of politeness, which is crucial in Japanese society and culture, and its sentence structure is the opposite of English. Additionally, there are many dialects that are used around the country. 

Although learning Japanese can be very challenging, it might be fun for the right person, too. If you decide to learn this language, you will explore a new alphabet and allow yourself to be fully immersed in Japanese culture, as there are many nuances only Japanese speakers understand.

Sign language

While sign language might not be the first you think of while talking about learning languages, it had to be placed on this list. When you learn sign language, you explore totally new skills, and your mind has extra work to do. Additionally, while knowing sign language, you can communicate with people with hearing disabilities. 

If you decide to learn sign language, remember there is no universal version of it. Users of British Sign Language might not understand American Sign Language, and the other way around. 

Lithuanian 

Lithuanian is considered the oldest Indo-European language and said to be 5,000 years old. Admittedly, it is quite hard to learn, as it was created based on ancient Sanskrit, ancient Greek, and Latin. Although most languages became simplified over time, that is not the case with Lithuanian, which kept most of the Proto-Indo-European features. If you are looking for a true challenge, learning Lithuanian might be a fun challenge for you. 

Hungarian 

Hungarian is a unique language which can be an enjoyable language to learn and comprehend due to its complexity. It has many puns and idioms, which makes for some entertaining lessons, and although it can be a little tricky, there are a few things that make it a little bit easier. For example, the word order in sentences is often flexible, and you can also create independent words from prefixes and suffixes, so there’s a bit of wiggle-room there.

Irish

The Irish language was the main language in Ireland, but with time, between the 17th and 20th centuries, it was replaced with English. Famine and mass migration from Ireland made even fewer people speak the language. However, in 1922, when the Republic of Ireland was founded, Irish became an official language together with English. While in Ireland, you can notice that many places have names in both Irish and English. 

Nowadays, the Irish language is becoming a bit more popular, and can be listened to on the radio, television or read in various publications. Learning the language is a very important part of Irish heritage, and although learning the Irish language can be challenging, it can also be fun. When you understand it, you can fully embrace the deep traditions of Irish culture and understand some of those more idiosyncratic elements of Ireland’s heritage.